ay as Captain Hocken didn' deserve it; but, the thing
bein' bought in such a hurry--an' knowin' William as I do--ten to one
he'd been taken in an' the thing wouldn't work when it came to be
tried."

"I told you," put in her spouse, "as the salesman had shown us how to
work it, an' it played the most life-like tunes, 'Home Sweet Home'
inclooded."

"The salesman!" said Mrs Tregaskis scornfully. "A long way you'll go in
the world if you trust a salesman! Why, there was a young man once in
Harris's Drapery showed me a bonnet--with humming-birds--perfectly
outrageous; I wouldn' ha' been seen in it; and inside o' five minutes he
had me there with the tears in my eyes to think I couldn' afford it."

"It works all right indeed, ma'am," Captain Cai assured her.

"Ah, maybe you're cleverer with machinery than William? I don't know
how you find him at sea, but _I_ can't trust him to wind the clock."

"I didn' set it goin' myself, ma'am; not personally."

"Well," sighed Mrs Tregaskis, "I wish William had consulted me, anyway,
before buying the thing in such a hurry. It's shop-soiled, he has to
admit; which I only hope you'll overlook."

"I've told you, my dear," put in Mr Tregaskis patiently, "that the mark
was done by a Challenge Cup. The fellow was quite honest about it."

"A more thoughtful man," the lady insisted, "would have consulted his
wife--would have brought the thing home, maybe, for a trial, to have her
opinion on it. The others wouldn't have raised any objection, I'm sure.
And," she concluded with another sigh, "he knows that I fairly dote on
music!"

"If that's so, ma'am," began Captain Cai, and hesitated, overtaken by
sudden caution, "I might let you have the loan of it, some time."

"You got out o' that very well," said Tobias, as they moved on. "I like
this place--" He paused, to scan a bill hoarding. "I likes it the more
the further I gets. But the women hereabouts seem more than usual
forward. Which an unprejoodiced man might call it a drawback."

"I'm sorry, 'Bias, she would keep talkin' about the darned box. . . .
I couldn' prevent the lads, d'ye see--not knowin' they'd any such thing
in their minds."

"She as good as invited herself to call an' listen to it," Tobias
pursued stolidly. "You headed her off very well. 'Tis possible, o'
course, we may get tired o' the tunes in time; an' then she may be
welcome to it for a spell. We'll see. Plenty o' time for that when
we've done liste